Looking for fresh ideas for your own grocery haul? Read along to see the ultimate weekly grocery haul, and what meals will be made with it.
Ever find yourself peeking into other peoples’ carts when you’re at the grocery store? I really hope you said yes, because if you didn’t I feel weird now. Whenever I pass by people at the store, I always quickly glance into their cart to see if they have anything I might want to go grab. I am always looking for fresh ideas and different foods to add to my weekly hauls, and have found many through other grocery hauls much like this one.
You will see a weekly grocery haul for two, and what meals will be made with these groceries.
After reading this, hopefully you will have a few new items on your list for your next grocery haul!
This post is all about the ultimate weekly grocery haul to inspire your inner foodie.
My Grocery Method
Now, before you read this and think “ALL of this food is just for TWO PEOPLE?” let me explain myself. We love food. That’s all.
In all seriousness though, my husband and I eat dinner at home every night of the week, with very few exceptions. We are true homebodies, and live in a small town with very few restaurants. This means having to travel at least half an hour to go out, and on most weekends, we want to just have simple evenings in. We like to cook together on the weekends, and enjoy our sweet home together by eating in. Not only do we prefer eating in, but it saves us a lot of money! Where we live, a night eating out costs about $120 for two. Throw in the overwhelming amount of people, mediocre food, and frustrating parking, and I can assure you you’ll get that “we should have just stayed home” look from your partner.
Cooking At Home
With cooking seven meals a week at home, lots of groceries are needed. Eating a well planned meal with my husband at the end of every day is something I truly look forward to. I put a lot of effort into each and every meal. Even the simplest of meals require a handful of ingredients.
On top of this, my husband brings his lunch to work every day, which means having five days worth of his lunch food on hand. Since I stay home, I make myself lunch everyday, which further requires more food. We both make our coffees at home, and eat breakfast at home as well. And lastly, I always plan heartier breakfasts and lunches on the weekends, along with snacks and treats. Add all this together, and I present to you, the ultimate weekly grocery haul to inspire your inner foodie!
Grocery Haul
This grocery haul is going to be laid out in categories, and I will mention what meals will be made with certain ingredients throughout.
Produce
Since I go to the store weekly, we always have fresh produce in the house. I don’t stock up on too much fruit, so that we don’t waste any. I know how much we eat, and shop accordingly. Shopping for in-season fruits is what I aim to do, mostly because they taste so much better, but also because they’re cheaper! The carrot sticks will be used in my husband’s lunch, and the salad will be used throughout the week.
Meat
All of this meat will be incorporated into different meals throughout the week. The popcorn chicken is going to be used in our lazy Saturday dinner of mac and cheese and popcorn chicken. Mix them together, and it truly brings you to another world. The pork loin will be paired with potatoes au gratin and salad. The bacon will be for Sunday night, I am making pancakes for dinner.
The sweet sausage will be mixed together with eggs for breakfast on Saturday. I learned this trick from a farmer’s wife, and it is one of the best mixtures ever. The chicken tenders will be frozen for an “emergency meal,” and the chicken thighs are for a creamy chicken recipe that will be served with rice and a salad. The chicken breasts are for a chicken, kale and gnocchi meal. You will see the other parts of these meals mixed in the photos below.
Grocery
My grocery items are usually a mix of pantry items that need restocking (olive oil, white cooking wine, etc.) side dishes for meals (au gratin, rice pilaf), and snacks for the week. I put a lot of this is my husband’s lunch, and a lot of this stuff will last us multiple weeks. The donuts will go with our coffee this weekend, because they looked too good to leave on the shelf. I also got some bags of treats (Nerds, Dove chocolates), and two cute marshmallow bunnies. Easter candy is my biggest temptation, and I like to treat my tastebuds every once in a while.
The abundance of popcorn can be explained. In our household, we don’t have a microwave. Read about how I cook 7 meals a week without a microwave in my post, Top Tips For The Microwave Free Cook. Our kitchen is very small, and a microwave just seemed like a waste of space. This, however, took away the joy of microwave popcorn.
Last night, my husband told me that he misses popcorn. We are having a movie night this weekend, so I figured I would surprise him with an excess of popcorn options! Read about other sweet things to do for your husband in my post, 9 Attentive Things To Do For Your Husband To Make Him Feel Appreciated. I know he likes the Smartfood white cheddar popcorn, and I also have heard Skinny Pop is good. These were the only brands I could find that had pre-popped popcorn. I also thought it would be fun to try and make our own stovetop popcorn, so I got the kernels, and popping oils. We’ll see if we can satisfy his popcorn craving!
Dairy
All pretty straight forward. The Gruyere cheese is for a gnocchi dish I am going to make, and the Reddi Wip is for our pancakes! We love the Coffee mate Coconut Creme creamer. It is so sweet and delicious, and adds such good flavor to your cup of coffee!
Bread
If I had to choose one food to eat for the rest of my life, it would be bread. I LOVE IT. It just makes everything so much better. The loaf of bread will be used for my husband’s lunches, the bagels will be used this weekend and throughout next week. The brioche buns will be used next week for my lunches, and the naan bread will be used as a side for a creamy chicken dish. I always have at least three packs of bread at my house, and I freeze any excess.
Hopefully this satisfied your inner foodie, and gave you some ideas on what to buy the next time you’re at the grocery store!
This post was all about the ultimate grocery haul.